Can-opener.



. 35 in elevation.v

UNITED `STATES PATENT FEICE.A

ALBERT e.. LA BARGE, F sT. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

CAN-OPENER! sPEemcATIoN fbrmng part of Letters Patent No. 648,763, dated may 1', i900. Application nel september 18,1899. serial No. 730,809. 'me man.)

To all whom it'may concern,.-

Be it known that I, ALBERT G. LA BAEGE, a citizen of the United States, residing at the city of St. Louis, in the State of`Missonri,-have invented certain new and -useful Improveinents in Can-Openers, of whicht-he following is a full, clear, and exact-description, reference being had toI the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification. lo My inventionl relates toa can-opener pr'ovided with a clamping-holder adapted to receive and hold cans of various siz'es and having a revoluble cutter mounted in -a frame and 'carried by a screw-shaft adapted to be 'l5 turned tov operate the cutter in a 4shearing and partly in elevation, of the cutter-blade..

and its carrying-shaft. Fig. V is a perspective view of one of the clamp-jaws. Fig. VI y3o is a cross-sectional viewtaken online VI VI, Fig. III. Fig. VII isa detail view showing a fragment of the base and the edges of the clamping-diskand jaw-receivin g disk in crosssection and-the lower end of the guide-frame 1 designates the base of the canopener, sur- -lrlgulglted by a frame 2, having interior guiderl s 4 desiguatesa clamping-disk provided with 4o a handle 5 and havingv curved slots 6 extending therethrough, the said slots extending from points near Vthe edge of the clampingdisk to points'near the central aperture 7 in the disk.

the base 1, beneath the clamping-disk4. 8 designates the jaw-receiving disk, mounted on the clamping-disk 4, having a centrallylocated extension 9 fitting in the aperture'i 5o of the clamping-disk and held to said disk and the base 1 by a pivot-screw 1 0. -In the jaw-receivingdisk 8 are radially-arranged 'S and separating their arms 17, so that the Fig. II shows a frag.

1a represents radially-arranged grooves in slots l1, provided with overhanging sho'ulders 12, that produce guideways 13, in which tongues 14 of lclamp-jaws 15 operate. Each 5 5 clamp-j aw 15 is provided with a downwardl extending stud 16, arranged to travel in t e curved slots 6 of theclaniping-,disk 4 andlili the radially-arranged grooves 1 in the base 1. Each cla'lnpjaw is formed with an lipwardly-extending arm 17, having an inner serrated face 18. When a` can is to be clamped in the can-opener, the handle 15 of the clamping-disk 4 is moved to one side, in which action the studs 16 of each clamp-jaw- 65 are caused to travel outwardly in the curved slot 6 of the clamping-disk and in the grooves 1a of the .base 1, thereby carrying the clampjaws toward the edge of their receiving-disk can may be placed on the disk 8 between the arms of the jaws. The disk 4 is'then rocked in the opposite direction, and the clamp-jaws are carried inwardly toward a common center by reason of the studs 16 being carried 75 along the slots 6 toward the innermost ends of said slots.- The clamp -jaws being serrated, the can gripped by them is held firmly between said jaws and prevented from turnlng.

19 designates a screw-shaft provided with a erank'20, passing through and-operating-in a threaded aperture in the head 2a of the frame 2. The lower end of the shaft 1 9 is held from lateral sway by-a guide-bar 21, v fitted tothe shaft, thel forked ends of which engage the guide-ribs 3 of the. frame 2, the

guide-bar being held to the screw-shaft by aV l key 22. 0n the lower end of the shaft 19 is a head 23, provided with a transverse tapering opening 24.

25 is a cutter-blade, the shan-k 26 of which is located in the opening -24 in the shaft-carried head 23 and is held in place by a tapering key 27. l

28 is a prong projecting downwardly from the head 23. l j g When the can has been clamped in the holder, as described, the screw-shaft 19 is revolved by the operator grasping the crank 2() and turning it so as to carry the screw-shaft downwardly, while the guide-bar 21 rides in contact with the guide-ribs 3 of the frame 2. As the head 23 is carried to the top ofl the Y IOO can the prong 28 is brought against the ofen-2 tra! portion of the can-top, effecting ajpune- ,ture and steadying the upper end of the can 'direction and cuts-through ythe'tcpj of thecan in a shearing manner, continuing downwardl 1y, which etectually assists in the euttingoperation. 1

By securing the shank 26 'of the cutterbIade 25 in the shaftscarried head23 through: means of the tapering key 2 7 I am enabled to adjust the said cutter-blade inwardly or out! wardly on loosening the key 27.

shaft 'set in said frame and provided with a zo crank,the aperture'd head carried by the'shaft, a-'cutter-blade and tapering key secured in said head and "the forked guide-bar carried by the shaft and held thereto, by the key 22, the forked bar being adapted to engage the z5l said guide-ribslof thev frame.

v v l A.- G.LA BARGE.

In presence of-' k f-E. S. KNIGHL, M, P, SmTH. 

